TRADE CARDS TURN OF THE CENTURY ADVERTISING

Up until the 19th century there were really not any national grocery brands. Someone went to the store and they got whatever brand there was, if there was a brand name on the package. But in the 19th century and particularly after mid-century many different national brands of groceries, machinery, medicine and many other products started to appear on grocer's shelves.

 Once brands were created, they had to be advertised and there weren't that many ways to advertise. Newspapers were full of ads but manufacturers were looking for a new way to advertise and trade cards were the answer.

New, inexpensive advertising methods had been developed and these made trade cards quite inexpensive so manufacturers could give them away at minimal expense.

 The cards typically had a color illustration on one side and advertising copy on the other, sometimes a particular store was identified but usually it was just the brand name of the product and some copy extolling the virtues of the product.

Some manufacturers created new designs at least four times a year. The cards were given away with the purchase of the product to reward the customer's loyalty,or some were given away to anyone that wanted them. And plenty of people did want them, collecting advertising trade cards was a major fad in the late 19th century and the early part of the 20th. Many children had large collections but even adults collected them and pasted the cards into albums.